First Accidental Discharge, feeling pretty bad

Status
Not open for further replies.
H

hankdatank1362

Member
Joined
Aug 5, 2006
Messages
2,377
Location
Myrtle Beach
Maybe I should call it a negligent discharge, since it was my negligence that caused it to happen in the first place. I was smoking a cigarette on the back porch, and usually when I go outside at night, I carry a handgun. Tonight, I grabbed my Dan Wesson model 14 .357 magnum.

Not having fired the gun in quite some time, I didn't remember how heavy the trigger pull was. So my intention was just to pull the trigger enough to make the hammer move a little and see if there was any trigger creep or anyhting.

Granted, i should have emptied the cylinder first. Morinic. Idiotic. I

Now I can't even think straight. I can't forgive myself. Normally, I pride myself on being overly careful and cautious. Geez, what a dumb#ss thing to do. Does anybody have any words of wisdom or anything to keep me from wanting to kick my own ass?
 
Well you made a mistake, atleast nobody was hurt. I don't think you need any words of wisdom; you'll remember this one for a long, long time, and I bet you'll be more cautious as a result.
 
First, make certain you know where the bullet went.

Then, let tomorrow be Day One with no negligent discharges.
You cannot take today away, but you can learn from it, integrate it into your psyche, and resolve to never violate the four rules again.
You have taken the first step. You are being honest with yourself, and accepting responsibility.
Begin anew, and be a safer shooter than you ever were before.

The Four Rules
1. All firearms are always loaded
2. Never let the muzzle of a firearm point at anything you are not willing to destroy
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot
4. Be sure of your target and what is behind it
 
Nope. Kick away!

Thanks for the reminder though, it can happen to any of us...a lot of people have trouble admitting they made a mistake. It speaks well of your character that you are willing to share your mistake. Glad it was just a wake up call and didn't result in any injuries.
 
Just punched a hole in my back porch, straight into the ground. For some reason, I remembered the "never point a weapon at..." part of the rules, just not the "keep finger outside of trigger guard at all times" part.

My wife is actually real understanding about all this. I thought this would buy me a one way ticket to no-gunsville, and I even felt like I deserved it. But she's being real supportive. Which is very nice.
 
I was starting to reply, but XavierBreath said it better than I could.

Just to add though... it was definitely a ND (c.f. Rule 3) - as long as you consider it as such, it sounds like you have a healthy attitude and will learn from this and be safer for it.

Thanks for standing up and sharing your mistake with us. If it makes you feel any better, that might make one of us that much more diligent the next time we're handling a firearm helpings avoid a costly mistake.

Joe
 
If you're going to be testing the trigger pull or stunting exhibition, you really need to be checking to ensure cylinder is empty.

Words of wisdom here are that you're lucky you didn't hurt someone. In chronological order: The carelessness, mishandling, accidental discharge, luck that no one was maimed or killed, shot, and the bad feeling knowing what you did was wrong ... there's the real wisdom. What more can be said?

Now get over it. :)
 
My opinion only - but if we all never fail to apply rule #2 then no one gets hurt - just your pride!!!

Any ''fiddling'' with a gun of any sort is IMO if rule #2 in place not going to hurt anyone even if all other rules get broke. Bullet into ground - no biggie except for red face!

Regard this as a simple and salutary lesson. Those who have never had an ND are always in line to have one. :)
 
I think all the punishment and wisdom you need will be self administered. As long as you didn't hurt anyone, kill the dog, or do major damage , then all is well that ends well. :eek:

The last guy who was perfect got paraded through the streets and nailed to a cross - at least you don't have to worry about that now ! ;)
 
Well, somethings in life it's okay to make mistakes in, like golf, or a math quiz. It's not okay to make a mistake with firearms. I'm just really amazed at the level of my own stupidity tonight.

And to think how many times I quote the 4 rules to other people. Usually at least twice a week. Maybe I should take a bit of my own advice.
 
You pulled all the way through a double action trigger while meaning to pull just enough to see if there was any creep?

I've got to be missing something here.
 
Had one myself a couple of weeks ago. I have a bunch of 7 round mags and ONE eight rounder. I actually thought about this, and usually only load 7 in the eight round mag. I always count my shots, without even thinking about it, and I counted off 7, and stood down. I turned back to my car and noticed the hammer was back. Hmm, stuck my finger in the trigger guard and squeezed.....

Shot it right into the ground, a couple of yards from the car. So no harm done, thank God. But I went over and over that in my mind, figuring out how that happened, the chain of mental lapses I went through to get to the negligent discharge. A string of stupid errors, and I am glad no one was there to see it, or get hurt.

Hopefully, this will make me more mentally sharp.

Brings up the question though, is it wise to use mags with differing numbers of rounds? Not for me. I get zoned out too easily. I have to have a routine I follow. So I think I will make it a strong regular practice to only load seven in all my mags for that gun. Or maybe buy a bunch more eights and retire the sevens.
 
Well no one was hurt, so you learned from it , some times it takes some thing like this to wake you up, i did it many years ago in the house as a kid, it scared the crap out of me! it happens and you learn to be more carefull , just saw on the news where a guy near here shot his self in the leg at his hunting camp, he bled to death before he could get help, so dont be to hard on your self, just be carefull! *csa*:)
 
Would it help you to feel better if you took your wonderful wife out for dinner? You are blessed to have her, and perhaps a nice evening out with her would be a good way to show her that and at the same time help you relax and recover.
 
Yet another reason to not smoke. Probably distracted you. Smoking is so not tactical.
 
Simply, you screwed up, bigtime. You picked up a gun and pulled the trigger.

NDs are not inevitable -- they are 100% preventable.

Don't kick yourself around forever...but a few days would be perfectly appropriate.
 
Admitting on the internet

that you did this speaks highly of you for being willing to be so openly honest with so many people. I think you learned a valuable lesson at very, very little cost. Sounds to me like you have a very nice wife also....treat her in a way that such a precious partner deserves.
 
Yet another reason to not smoke. Probably distracted you. Smoking is so not tactical.
Click to expand...

Tatical is the new "cool". I can see it now "That's a pretty tactical new plasma TV you've got there".

On Topic: Thanks for coming on here and telling hundreds of people about your mistake. Anyone could have swept it under the table and gone on. It takes a big man to not only admit his mistakes, but hold them up for everyone to see and learn from. Thanks.
 
Accept the fact that you had a serious mental lapse, that no one was hurt because of it and that you must learn from your mistake. The real problem NOW, going forward, is if you make that same mistake twice! Put it behind you, go to the range and deliberately run through the entire process as you practice.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

B
  • Locked
Accidental discharge wasn't
2 3
Replies
54
Views
4K
texlaw67235
T
G
  • Locked
Accidental Discharges
2
Replies
37
Views
3K
MyGreenGuns
M
S
  • Locked
Accidental Discharge (Graphic Pics)
2 3 4 5
Replies
103
Views
8K
seuss
S
A
  • Locked
Proofread please
Replies
4
Views
427
ambush
A
D
  • Locked
'Disturbing Trend' Seen In Negligent Discharges Of Weapons In Afghanistan
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
mrcr0603
M
Back
Top